Introduction
It snowed. It’s rare to see snow in the Netherlands in November. However, it snowed and it’s
snowing. I began to practice the ‘Snow’ riff again. It was a good warm up for further shredding
exercises. Snow has been lingering in my head for a decade. Some people say it’s one of the
corniest RHCP songs. It might be, but Frusciante is not afraid of writing corny stuff. He can
turn water into wine in one second. Snow triggers emotion. I had not known that ‘snow’ actually
refers to heroin until recent years, when I delved deeper into the history of the band as well as
Frusciantology. I listen to Snow every winter. In my memories, Snow was usually played by the
end of each lunar year. With fireworks lit up and new clothes prepared, snow fell on me. Like a
tree, fostered by the snow, I grew a new wheel of life. ‘Running through the field where all my
tracks will be concealed.’ Snow brings hope, which conceals one’s dreadful past. I was shocked
when I heard Snow (live in Calgary https://youtu.be/L-1--HCBoyE?si=ZM0olQImLsaPVdAK
) for the first time. In the improvised solo, when that major third interval broke out of
Frusciante’s hand, I could hear him shouting aloud that he could confront his past and be ready
for the next adventure. Adventure matters. We’ll talk about it later.
Today, 22 Nov, 2024, marks the 30th anniversary of Frusciante’s most thrilling adventure in his
career, the release of Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-shirt. If I have to choose an album to
play at my funeral, it has to be this one. On 14 Nov, 2020, I received the first electric guitar in my
life. It was borrowed from my friend. When it arrived, it was a bit broken. I took it to a guitar
shop to set it up. Eight days later — 22 Nov, 2020 — I got it back and played the first note on an
electric guitar. I don’t think it’s a coincidence. The art of Frusciantology is fatefully rooted in my
DNA. Aer noodling with that guitar for a year, I decided to learn to play like John Frusciante.
The major trigger was the Can’t Stop opening jam in London, 2007
(https://youtu.be/mc58QjI6vDc?si=IHsF8lT3S3mLJ-r0). I had followed RHCP since 2013, but I
had never paid attention to their live jams as a noob who could only play open chords on an
acoustic. I had the desire to diversify my techniques at the very beginning. However, aer I saw
that video, I felt obliged to internalize that style under the risk of sacrificing other techniques,
because that sound is not about electric guitar but music itself (I can write a research paper on
it, but you’ll get it if you get it, especially if you are familiar with a few memes about the figure
of stereotypical guitar players. As Dave Simpson once said, ‘he doesn’t play rock or guitar, he
plays music. He eats music and sleeps on music.), the flow, the intensity.
This article is not dedicated to a deep dive of the album but to share my limited understanding
and interpretation of *Frusciantology*, the studies of my hero. If you are curious about the story
behind the album and its production, feel free to check out these two articles and the short
documentary The Stuff:
There's no more me – the history and love story behind John Frusciante's Niandra LaDes
by Tuomas Karemo (big shout out to the Finnish folks! They have a really good grasp of
alternative music in addition to metal!)
https://yle.fi/aihe/artikkeli/2018/10/01/theres-no-more-me-the-history-and-love-story-behind-joh
n-frusciantes-niandra
Production details
by Leandro Cabo
https://www.rhcpsessions.com/john-frusciante-recording-sessions-1
The Stuff
by Johnny Depp and Gibby Haynes (Butthole Surfers frontman)
https://youtu.be/TWBj7NR338Y?si=fTojG07_m_zA5fd-
PS: some of the contents here are translated from my diaries in Chinese via DeepL and
ChatGPT. I was too busy to translate them by hand. I checked all the translated texts and tried
my best to ensure that they make sense.
Frusciantology 101 - Music Philosophy
I’m not qualified to be the guru to teach you Frusciante’s guitar chops. For this, I highly
recommend you to watch ALL of Dave Simpson’s tutorials on Youtube, that’s where I learned
the tricks. I haven’t taken any lessons in the past four years. I believe the resources on Youtube
are sufficient if you are really passionate about learning to play guitar. More importantly,
LISTEN. Listening is the most basic and ultimate skill to learn any music.
1.1 General Philosophy: Intensity / Dissonance v. Consonance, Imagination
This rule applies to not only Frusciante but also all the great artists. When we consider a piece
of music to be good, people might refer to the tone, the melody, the rhythm, the structure of
composition, etc. My friend, also a diehard fan of Frusciante, who teaches philosophy in a
Chinese university, once brought up the concept of intensity for music. I got what he meant, but
he didn’t offer a clear definition. Aer some contemplation, I came to the conclusion that
intensity is the tension between dissonance and consonance, a general criteria of aesthetics.
It’s backed up by empirical research in cognitive sciences. I learned it from an open lecture
given by a professor in aesthetics at Leidenhoven College (a collective residence for Catholic
scholars and students in Amsterdam) early this year.
Here dissonance and resonance are not relevant to music harmonies. Instead, they are
contextualized in a broader sense. They could be described as order and disorder, or comfort
and discomfort.
This is strongly manifested in JF’s playing. For example, he can play a funk riff full of staccatos,
followed by a highly fluid solo, or he can seamlessly switch from a ‘purified’ clean tone to some
extremely harsh, aggressive sound with three distortion pedals in a row. For some audiences,
fluidity and distortion (well, usually distortion helps with fluidity, for it can sustain the sound.)
are comfort zones, while for the rest intermittence and clean tone are more comfortable.
Everything here is relative. Relativity creates tension. Let's say, of course, I like funk rhythms,
but I prefer fluidity over it, for it’s closer to my auditory comfort zone. As a result, for me, the
riffs are the dissonance, while the solo coming aer is the consonance. To generalize, no matter
what one prefer, they can always feel the tension. There are myriad means of creating such
tensions, and Frusciante has been exploring these means for life. Among all the artists I
consider as avant-garde, JF is the most special one. He seldom dumps relentless shredding,
sophisticated harmonies, or intricate time-signature changes into his songs.Instead, he seeks to
push boundaries by harnessing tension through minimalist elements. Frusciante is the living
definition of ‘Less is More.’
The key to mastering music lies in imagination. Some people oen claim it’s all about the
“feel,” but that notion oversimplifies the process. What they refer to as “feel” is more biological
— it stems from muscle memory. Your fingers develop muscle memory, so does your brain. In
essence, learning music is remarkably similar to learning a language. Licks and chords serve as
vocabulary, while music theory provides the grammar. With a solid grasp of these, the more you
practice, the more fluent you become.
Recognizing this parallel between language and music is crucial. Among virtuoso players,
Guthrie Govan exemplifies this linguistic approach to music. As a former English literature
student at Oxford, Govan is known for his articulate speech in interviews and his ability to
transfer linguistic principles into his musical expression. He once mentioned that before playing
a solo, he envisions it as an “essay,” visualizing all the notes on the fretboard. However, while his
linguistic precision is impressive, it oen dominates his music to the point where many of his
albums resemble structured TED Talks rather than pure artistic exploration. The notable
exception is Erotic Cakes, which stands out because it embraces a more imaginative approach.
Unlike most of his work, Erotic Cakes feels like a dreamscape beyond structured language
systems (Do yourself a favor, check out this album, especially the track Ner Ner.).
Imagination is more than just the ability to articulate complex ideas—it’s the capacity to
daydream and create something untethered from conventional systems. Daydreaming is
fundamentally different from the structured act of speaking in a classroom. Many pieces in
Erotic Cakes evoke this sense of “dreaming,” presenting a new space outside linguistic
frameworks. While some might associate imagination with avant-garde experimentation, the
two are not inherently linked. Avant-garde works can oen be articulated or quantified, much
like a scientific paper. True imagination, however, transcends these boundaries, creating
something uniquely untethered and inspired. It involves discovering entirely new ways of
shaping and manipulating tension. The examples mentioned earlier, such as the contrast
between intermittence and fluidity, are relatively binary. In reality, the musical landscape is
multi-dimensional, presenting artists with more challenges in fully unleashing their
imagination.
In a 2006 Guitar World interview, John said, ‘Bend the fabric of reality.’
(https://youtu.be/8mh9Q6mxFdg?si=zRSOj9iTW7jB2rrm) Here’s my interpretation of that
mysterious yet genius phrase. The linguistic approach I mentioned earlier involves exploring a
space defined by others, where the tension you manipulate is borrowed from someone or
something that preexists. However, true imagination enables you to create a new kind of tension
that breaks into a unique space, a realm that exists solely between your ego and divinity. I think
that’s the so-called ‘your own voice.’ Nevertheless, according to John’s interview in 2009
(https://youtu.be/CAmL5qmfJ0Q?si=mNjtAUHs-YGPYXBb), instead of ‘creating’, it’s more about
‘discovering,’ as John believed that artists are subject to ‘nature.’
1.2 The Necessity of GRINDING and Music Theory
John Frusciante oen presents himself to the public as a laid-back, unorganized figure—but this
is purely an illusion. Beneath that facade lies the GRINDING mindset. He used to practice for
up to 10 hours per day, and he can pull off flashy shredding shits like many of other metalheads
(https://youtu.be/uhliyfljevs?si=8iiNKRwr9pvXe9Vn).Through my own practice routines, I’ve
come to a conclusion: if you want to play soulful and articulate phrases, even in the simplest
forms, you need to master shredding. Shredding isn’t just about speed; it’s about achieving
thorough control over your instrument and the ability to precisely express your musical ideas.
Contrary to common belief, Frusciante has a strong foundation in music theory, particularly in
classical piano, according to Flea. Songs like Untitled #6, with multiple harmonizing melodies,
showcases his grasp of counterpoint. Besides, while most musicians typically record a backing
track and then layer a solo over it, John oen flips this process entirely. In songs like Untitled #2,
he first recorded a solo and then reversed it, using the backward solo as the foundation. He then
harmonized it with a chord progression that complements the reversed melodies. What’s truly
astounding is that Untitled #2 features several key changes, meaning he had to cra a new chord
progression that seamlessly follows these shis in the backward solo. If you think it’s easy, try it
by yourself. It’s about not only harmonies but also timing — he’s a genius of time and groove.
Much of his rhythmic work in 4/4 deceptively doesn’t sound like 4/4 at all (e.g. Torture Me from
RHCP’s Stadium Arcadium, Wednesday’s Song from his solo works). This demonstrates his deep
understanding of rhythmic variation. This aligns with Frank Zappa’s famous quote: ‘4/4 is the
most difficult.’ As a fan of Zappa, Frusciante possesses a strong passion for odd time signature
and polyrhythm as well. He once revealed that the pursuit of a solo career and the use of drum
machines enables him to explore more unconventional and interesting rhythms. He also
attempted odd time signatures in some pretty ‘underground’ tracks during his tenure in RHCP.
Gong Li (It is confirmed to be named aer the Chinese actress Gong Li who rose to fame in
Hollywood at that time), my favorite b-side track, features a riff in 13/8 and 15/8 (The percussive
triplets in the background confirms it’s 15/8 instead of 15/16).
In short, ‘Less is More’ comes aer ‘More is More.’ No excuse.
1.3 Composition, Recording and Improvisation
The principles behind Frusciante’s songwriting largely align with the philosophy discussed
earlier in section 1.1. When it comes to recording, he prioritizes simplicity and clarity while
embracing imperfections in tone. John doesn’t care about achieving a “safe sound” or a “perfect
tone.” For him, everything serves the purpose of intensity and emerges as a product of
imagination. Another standout aspect of his work is his obsession with backward tracks, a
technique prominently featured in Niandra Lades and recurring in many songs from his later
solo career, such as For Air and A Loop. Reversing a track is an economical yet effective way to
obtain special sound effects. To me, it evokes the sensation of time rewinding, as if John is
delving into his memories and reflecting on his past.
John’s improvisation style draws heavily from Jimi Hendrix, with a strong emphasis on the
“situation”— how he is situated at a moment. When he’s in a good mood, his solos flow
smoothly and sweetly. On tougher days, he delivers raw, aggressive noise. This situational
approach means his solos for the same song vary dramatically from night to night. For John,
perfectionism isn’t the goal. It’s about letting it happen. Moreover, John loves jumping out of
the rhythm, deliberately creating laybacks.
1.4 Frusciante’s Own Blues
One aspect of John Frusciante’s playing that deeply resonates with me is his unique approach to
‘blues.’ I’ve never connected with conventional blues, since it feels distant from my cultural
background, nature, and everything. Albert King once said, ‘Jimi can’t play blues at all. I taught
him a lesson.’(https://youtube.com/shorts/ojcApnzlWJo?si=QnEs4WrwUi6S1g_Q) Well, he is
wrong and right. He’s wrong, because he sucked. It was more likely that Jimi embarrassed him
than learned anything. He’s right, since what people like John and Jimi play is not ‘blues.’ They
play themselves. They learned the basics of blues and interpreted it in their own ways.
John’s take on blues, for instance, doesn’t rely on the stereotypical mixolydian mode. Instead, he
blends pentatonics with dorian and phrygian modes, creating a hauntingly melancholy sound. I
call it the “Scar Tissue sound,” because it evokes the broken, barren, and whimsical imagery of
the Scar Tissue music video, a vibe I oen revisit. This signature tone—desperate yet
warm—can also be heard in live solos from songs like I Could Have Lied, Dani California, and
Final Jam in Chorzów.
Moreover, a lot of John’s ‘blues’ jams are driven by Flea's bass lines. Flea, growing up playing
jazz, oen deviates from the rigid 12-bar blues structure in favor of theme-driven music. These
themes can be very simple. For example, in many open jams of Can’t Stop, the theme revolves
around just two notes, D and E. This simplicity creates a vast space for melodies and chords
outside the key (E minor), resulting in more flexibility and surprises.
As a fan of Dave Simpson, I also appreciate him for introducing other maestros in addition to
his tutorials on how to play like JF. Guitar players like Peter Green, Rory Gallagher, Mike
McCready (Pearl Jam), etc. are essentially in the same vein with John Frusciante, and the origin
is Jimi Hendrix. They all play ‘their own blues.’ These players are oen overlooked, since they
consciously or unconsciously rebel against the mainstream, commercial trends of music built
upon conventional blues (a ‘safer’ sound). Aer leaving Fleetwood Mac, he retreated to Israel
and faded from the spotlight. Ironically, the public largely remembers the commercially
successful Fleetwood Mac era led by Lindsey Buckingham, while forgetting Peter Green—the
"king of white blues" (https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-last-blues-of-peter-green/). Adding to
the irony, Green’s iconic Les Paul, the “Greeny,” was later purchased by Kirk Hammett at an
exorbitant price. That was an unfortunate turn, because we all know Kirk sucks (and that Greeny
demonstration video has been a perennial joke in the guitar community
https://youtube.com/shorts/U1WEgwQYEBw?si=fKDccRgmCc-xOCTA
Well, I didn’t find the part he failed, but you know, it’s THAT video XD)! Rory Gallagher’s story
is even more tragic. Despite his immense talent and influence (Jimi Hendrix said Rory was the
true GOAT), he lived and died in poverty, his health deteriorating in his final years.
1.5 Teamwork
For John quitted the band twice, many people might consider him a bad team member. However,
John is extremely versed in working with other musicians. As he once said, ‘I’m always so
absorbed in the bass and drum. I’d consider my work as adding a backing track for a bass solo.’
John’s humility helped RHCP to produce a lot of bass/drum-oriented masterpieces such as
Nobody Weird Like Me and Emit Remmus, where he only played two notes in the verse riff. His
choice of high-treble, mildly overdriven tones also frees the low frequencies from the bass,
enabling the audience to hear Flea more clearly.
Nonetheless, John had also criticized collaborating with other musicians. In his views,
collaborating with people for a long time prohibits his adventures in new realms of music
(https://youtu.be/cvPdnZ80Eaw?si=qC52Hsk4KSV-KFxd).
1.6 Inspiration From Other Arts and Philosophy
Frusciante is a big fan of Nietzsche, Aleister Crowley, William S. Burroughs, and Captain
Beeeart. I checked out quite a few Captain Beeeart’s albums. I also read a chapter of Naked
Lunch by Burroughs but didn’t get it. I’m not an expert of drama, literature, and Nietzsche’s
philosophy, so I'd rather not leave any comment except for one intriguing thing. Both Burroughs
and Captain Beeeart are pioneers of collaging in their fields. Consequently, the idea of
collaging was appropriated by Frusciante as well. Many songs in Niandra Lades are the products
of very different tracks collaged. For example, there’s a backwards solo in Untitled #2, some
screams in Untitled #5 & #8, and a clarinet track in Untitled #13.
1.7 Why Techno
It once pissed me off that Frusciante went to the techno industry in the 10s, because I hate
techno. However, recently I started to develop a new view on the relationship between guitar
music, rock, and techno. I’d love to appreciate Boris for the inspiration.
My bachelor thesis defense was held in a group of 3 students supervised by the same teacher.
Since our supervisor has an interdisciplinary background, our theses fell in very different
realms, mine in urbanism, Milton’s in media & sports, and Boris’s in the culture of raving. He
argued that it’s a form of entertainment pushing to the extreme, relentless entertainment and
ecstasy. Within the conventional consumerist framework, pleasure and pain coexist. For
example, aer downing 10 bottles of beer, you might feel guilty in spite of the pleasure brought
by the alcohol. Techno, however, as a counterculture, aims to reach a state where the pursuit of
pleasure overcomes guilt. If hip-pop is the ‘postmodern rock,’ techno would be the
‘post-postmodern rock.’ As an avant artist who always seeks for new frontiers, Frusciante would
have a natural gravitation toward electronic music in general. And it’s no secret that he has been
obsessed with those electronic sounds coming out of Line6 FM4, DL6, or Moogerfooger since
2002.
When I asked Boris about his thoughts on new metal and the ‘modern guitar,’ he compared it to
techno, claiming that they have a similar effect and purpose. ‘The history of modern music is
about electrification and the reduction of human body’s intervention. The more it is
electrified, the closer it is to ecstasy, pure pleasure, you know.’ As a somehow conservative,
nostalgic guy, I could hardly agree to this view. However, it is objectively true that Frusciante
has been moving towards electrification for most of his career, and I also like electric guitar
much more than acoustic guitar. I guess that’s why Frusciante’s so fascinating to me: he’s
standing on the cross of modern music history. On one hand, he’s electrifying his music. On the
other hand, he maintains the tradition from Jimi Hendrix — it’s about the role of the human
body (ironically, Jimi was also among the very first to use effect pedals, a way of electrification). I
once said that there are three founding guys of modern electric guitar, each representing a
direction. Allan Holdsworth is simply from another planet; Ritchie Blackmore initiated the
mechanical, discreet style of shredding; Jimi kept the human part: as an organic being, you are
not supposed to play ‘precisely’ by nature. Instead of pretending to be a machine, you’d better
reveal your flesh in the music. It’s supposed to be continuous, so, yet resilient. What Frusciante
attempted to do for years is to re ve al his body, his scar tissues, and his soul through the most
advanced technologies (actually Allan Holdsworth did that as well, but dude’s always in his own
league. He was among the first several ones to develop music programming. The purpose was to
get a tone that sounds like pipe instruments for his passion in saxophones.). It’s beyond
magnificent.
Frusciantology 102 - Life Philosophy
The most remarkable aspect of my studies on John Frusciante is that his mindset has not only
shaped the way I approach music but also how I navigate the world and my life. Although I
didn’t study Frusciante as intensively in 2022 as I did earlier, many of his ideas were already
taking root in my life. Looking back, I can see that since the summer of 2021, when I first
decided to delve into Frusciante’s work, his ideology and willpower have gradually permeated
me. Frusciante’s willpower is truly unique, unlike anything I had previously tried to emulate. In
2001, he released To Record Only Water for Ten Days, a title that might encapsulate his
philosophy. His willpower is like water—so and infinitely fluid, yet unstoppable. This
approach contrasts with traditional notions of strength and determination, offering a gentler yet
equally unyielding perspective. His spirituality and anti-materialism has profoundly influenced
me. Over the past couple of years, this core principle has made me more and more based.
One day I was reading an essay by the Chinese historian Liu Zhongjing. ‘Most primitive peoples
and primitive cultures don't have a concept of life, because they don't even see themselves as a
whole person, they don't see their life as a coherent whole. They don't see themselves as one
person, but as a temporary union of several souls, several spirits, and several pixies. Actually
that’s a good way to be yourself.’ Upon these words, the first one to come into my mind was John
Frusciante. He is exactly that kind of person who has lived more than five lives in the past
decades. His different lives could be summarized as the followings:
1986 - 1989 (He attended Guitar Institute of Tech but quitted shortly, cuz that was too easy for
him. Later he played in a few local shows): fearless speed metal shredder
1989 - 1992 (joined RHCP): funky punky young energetic CHAD (not the drummer XD)
1992 - 1998 (first time to quit the band, Niandra Lades era): feminine, depressed poet (‘Niandra
Lades’ is the imagined female version of himself)
1998 - 2002 (Californication era): mature, minimalist funk master, born-again miracle
2002 - 2005 (BTW era and his most intensive period of solo albums release): transcendent indie
musician
2006 - 2007 (Stadium Arcadium era): incarnation of Jimi Hendrix (He disclosed that ‘revisting
Hendrix’ was the goal at that time during his interview with Rick Rubin in 2022. I forget which
episode it was.)
2007 - 2010 (second time to quit the band, released The Empyrean and collaborated with Omar
Rodriguez for another guitar album): experimental guitar wizard
2010 - present: avant techno guru
My favorite quote from John Frusciante is, ‘Most people are too obsessed with protecting
themselves.’ This obsession is to avoid their spiritual power and inevitable oracles. By doing so,
many people fall into an endless abyss of misery or become blinded by the illusions of the world,
the so-called matrix. In contrast, people like John willingly expose themselves to their destiny,
even if it’s lethal. I believe this mindset is a major reason behind his choice to embrace heroin
addiction.
(IMPORTANT NOTE: I would never encourage drug use in any form. Despite living in
Amsterdam for four years, I’ve never tried drugs. I firmly believe that sobriety is the better
path to artistic inspiration. Even John himself later emphasized in multiple interviews that
he no longer saw drugs as necessary or beneficial for inspiration.)
At some point, John seemed to accept that self-destruction was inevitable for him. As he
revealed in an interview with a Dutch TV program
(https://youtu.be/h7pV9bSGcLM?si=O5_XeWxIsrqYSnG2), his drug use was a way to “escape
from the ugliness of the world.” This temporary suffering, however harrowing, eventually led to
long-term peace of mind.
Among all of John’s phases, his life between 1998 and 2002 stands out as the most remarkable. I
saw a video by Dave Simpson last year, in which he said, ‘The solo in Moscow’s Red Square hits me
so hard... If you know, you know why Scar Tissue was so important.’ In 1999, freshly out of rehab and
recovering from years of physical and emotional deterioration, John had transformed. During
the rehab, he merely weighed 40 kg. However, right aer that, he went on tour with the band.
When he appeared on the stage, he was shirtless and shockingly muscular! His solos from 1999
are among the hardest to replicate — not because of technical precision, but due to their raw,
fragmented quality. His playing frequently broke rhythm, stuttered, and sounded almost
disconnected, yet it felt divine in its imperfections. Even a timing master like John Scofield
couldn’t replicate the unique cadence of those performances. If 1997 marked Frusciante’s
crucifixion, then 1999 was his resurrection. It felt like another life that God intended for him.
This brings me to an enigma in my last blog: why is Californication so special? The first time I
listened to it, I only got it’s about ‘California.’ Later I dismissed it as commercial fluff. But
looking back now, I see it as a tier S+ masterpiece. The album’s cover, inspired by a dream
Frusciante had, encapsulates this theme. Californication is frusciante’s exclusive time. The ‘time’
I mean here is the ‘time’ in Primeval and Other Times by Olga Tokarczuk (2019 Nobel Prize
winner, highly recommended). Semantically, it’s very close to ‘narrative’ or Parallel Universe
(second song of the album), a collection of everything that only you have experienced and
perceived, regardless of reality or illusion. Californication is also about maturing. Californication
is the period of time when you start to settle down and stop squandering. Californication is
luxury. At the end of luxury, you have nothing to squander anymore. The song that actually
represents the album is not the title song but a b-side, Quixotilixcer. If you understand this
song, you understand the entire album.
Frusciante's views on life seems heavily influenced by his fascination with Nietzsche and
Aleister Crowley (exactly the one in Ozzy Osbourne’s Mr. Crowley, a heavy metal classic). It’s said
that Frusciante practices certain occults. Fans of black or doom metal would find these themes
familiar. Frusciante has never directly explored these genres in his music. However, his
expressions of despair and existential musings, especially in his 1997 album Smile From the Streets
You Hold, share striking parallels with the emotional weight and darkness found in bands like
Type O Negative, Misþyrming, etc. Thus, I once invented a term specially catered for
Frusciante’s dark music, ‘pan-black metal.’
End
Bruh it’s crazy that I wrote more than 4000 words for this shit, equivalent to half of my
bachelor’s thesis. I don’t know how people will react when this is published on my website, but
it’s more important that I write it out. It’s a milestone for self-reflection, since John Frusciante
has played the most important role in my personal growth over the past few years. Feel free to
share it with other Frusciantists!
Acknowledgements
I genuinely appreciate the following people:
John Frusciante himself for being my biggest inspiration
Dave Simpson for providing the best tutorials on how to play like John
Vlad, Mika, Noach, Chul, Dennis, ‘Zephyr’ (idk his name, that’s his WeChat ID), Yingzhou
Qiao, Eric Zhang, Sunbridge Guitar Global (a Tokyo-based guitar shop), Tong, and many other
friends that I might forget to mention (lol) for sharing a strong passion on John’s music with
me
My band members Felix, Dave, David, Vyaan, and Roan for making it come true to cover John’s
favorite work This Velvet Glove live with an interesting mashup of Isn’t She Lovely
